This review is focused on different subsets of T cells: CD4 and CD8, memory and effector functions, and their role in CAR-T therapy––a cellular adoptive immunotherapy with T cells expressing chimeric antigen receptor. The CAR-T cells recognize tumor antigens and induce cytotoxic activities against tumor cells. Recently, differences in T cell functions and the role of memory and effector T cells were shown to be important in CAR-T cell immunotherapy. The CD4+ subsets (Th1, Th2, Th9, Th17, Th22, Treg, and Tfh) and CD8+ memory and effector subsets differ in extra-cellular (CD25, CD45RO, CD45RA, CCR-7, L-Selectin [CD62L], etc.); intracellular markers (FOXP3); epigenetic and genetic programs; and metabolic pathways (catabolic or anabolic); and these differences can be modulated to improve CAR-T therapy. In addition, CD4+ Treg cells suppress the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy, and different approaches to overcome this suppression are discussed in this review. Thus, next-generation CAR-T immunotherapy can be improved, based on our knowledge of T cell subsets functions, differentiation, proliferation, and signaling pathways to generate more active CAR-T cells against tumors.
Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) is a non-receptor kinase that is overexpressed in many types of tumors. We developed a novel cancer-therapy approach, targeting the main autophosphorylation site of FAK, Y397 by computer modeling and screening of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) small molecule compounds database. More than 140,000 small molecule compounds were docked into the Nterminal domain of the FAK crystal structure in 100 different orientations that identified 35 compounds. One compound 14 (1,2,4,5-Benzenetetraamine tetrahydrochloride) significantly decreased viability in most of the cells to the levels equal or higher than control FAK inhibitor, 1a (2-[5-Chloro-2-[2-methoxy-4-(4-morpholinyl)phenylamino]pyrimidin-4-ylamino]-Nmethylbenzamide; TAE226) from Novartis, Inc. The compound 14 specifically and directly blocked phosphorylation of Y397-FAK in a dose-and time-dependent manner. It increased cell detachment and inhibited cell adhesion in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, 14 effectively caused breast tumor regression in vivo. Thus, targeting the Y397 site of FAK with 14 inhibitor can be effectively used in cancer therapy.
Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) is a nonreceptor kinase that is overexpressed in many types of tumors and associates with multiple cell surface receptors and intracellular signaling proteins through which it can play an important role in survival signaling. A link between FAK and p53 in survival signaling has been reported, although the molecular basis of these events has not been described. In the present study, we report that FAK physically and specifically interacts with p53 as demonstrated by pull-down, immunoprecipitation, and co-localization analyses. Using different constructs of N-terminal, central, and C-terminal fragments of FAK and p53 proteins, we determined that the N-terminal fragment of FAK directly interacts with the N-terminal transactivation domain of p53. Inhibition of p53 with small interfering p53 RNA resulted in a decreased complex of FAK and p53 proteins in 293 cells, and induction of p53 with doxorubicin in normal human fibroblasts caused an increase of FAK and p53 interaction. Introduction of the FAK plasmid into p53-null SAOS-2 cells was able to rescue these cells from apoptosis induced by expression of wild type p53. In HCT 116 colon cancer cells, co-transfection of FAK plasmid with p21, MDM-2, and BAX luciferase plasmids resulted in significant inhibition of p53-responsive luciferase activities, demonstrating that FAK can reduce transcriptional activity of p53. The results of the FAK and p53 interaction study strongly support the conclusion that FAK can suppress p53-mediated apoptosis and inhibit transcriptional activity of p53. This provides a novel mechanism for FAKp53-mediated survival/apoptotic signaling. The focal adhesion kinase (FAK)1 is a nonreceptor cytoplasmic 125-kDa protein-tyrosine kinase that controls a number of cellular signaling pathways, including proliferation, cell spreading, motility, and survival (1-4). The FAK gene was first isolated from chicken (1) and mouse (5) fibroblasts and then from human T and B lymphocytes (6) and human sarcoma samples (7). The FAK gene is located on chromosome 8q24 (8, 9) in humans and on chromosome 15 in mice (8).FAK is overexpressed in many types of tumors (7, 10 -14), and it was suggested that FAK up-regulation occurred in early stages of tumorigenesis (13,15). FAK mRNA levels have been shown to be increased in premalignant adenomatous tissues and invasive and metastatic tumors (7, 15). Increased FAK mRNA expression was demonstrated in adenomatous tissues, invasive tumors, and metastatic tumors (7, 16). Recently, real time PCR analysis of matched samples of normal colon mucosa, colorectal carcinoma, and liver metastases demonstrated increased FAK mRNA and protein levels in tumor and metastatic tissues versus normal tissues (16). Cloning and characterization of the FAK promoter demonstrated NF-B and p53 transcription factor binding sites that had potential importance for regulation of FAK transcription (17).FAK was originally isolated as a tyrosine phosphorylated protein in v-Src-transformed chicken embryo fibroblasts (1, 18). The struct...
It is twenty years since Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) was found to be overexpressed in many types of human cancer. FAK plays an important role in adhesion, spreading, motility, invasion, metastasis, survival, angiogenesis, and recently has been found to play an important role as well in epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT), cancer stem cells and tumor microenvironment. FAK has kinase-dependent and kinase independent scaffolding, cytoplasmic and nuclear functions. Several years ago FAK was proposed as a potential therapeutic target; the first clinical trials were just reported, and they supported further studies of FAK as a promising therapeutic target. This review discusses the main functions of FAK in cancer, and specifically focuses on recent novel findings on the role of FAK in cancer stem cells, microenvironment, epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, invasion, metastasis, and also highlight new approaches of targeting FAK and critically discuss challenges that lie ahead for its targeted therapeutics. The review provides a summary of translational approaches of FAK-targeted and combination therapies and outline perspectives and future directions of FAK research.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.